On Monday, the USA Today coaches poll elevated 24-3 Michigan State to its No. 1 ranking. AP voters declared the Spartans the No. 2 team in the country.

A day earlier, however, the NCAA basketball committee revealed the only in-season rankings with actual significance – the tourney’s top 16 teams if the season ended that day. There, Michigan State checked in at … 11th. The Spartans, No. 1 in the country per the coaches, are only the No. 3 seed in the South.

While not uncommon to see the committee deviate from the polls on Selection Sunday, it’s not usually that big a discrepancy. And the teams that suffer are much more likely to be non-power conference teams – not a Big Ten powerhouse.

But Tom Izzo’s 2017-18 squad is dealing with some unusual circumstances. For one thing, the Spartans did not play their usual rigorous non-conference schedule (it ranks in the 200s nationally). That, coupled with a historically weak Big Ten – one currently...

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